NAN

Mr Chris Isiguzo, who is aspiring to be President of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), has promised to fight for special salary package for Nigerian journalists if elected.

Isiguzo, who was in Makurdi on Tuesday, on his campaign tour to the Benue NUJ Council, said he would also ensure regular payments of salaries to media workers to curtail cases of sharp practices in the system.

He said that journalists across the country needed special salary package following the volume of work and attendant risks associated with their duties.

The NUJ presidential aspirant said the issue of special salary package for journalists would not be treated with levity.

Isiguzo, who has served as NUJ’s Vice President, Zone C, decried a situation where journalists’ salaries were hardly paid and regretted that some newsmen were owed years of salaries, pensions and gratuity.

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He said if elected, he would meet both private and public media owners to urgently find ways of addressing cases of injustice against colleagues nationwide.

The aspirant, who was also a former National Ex-Officio member of the Union, promised to focus on five-point agenda including repositioning International Institute of Journalism (IIJ), welfare, ICT, professionalism /Constitutional review, and effective administration.

He regretted that the certificate issued by the IIJ at the moment was not recognized by some states and universities because of improper accreditation adding that he would decentralize the institute and secure its full accreditation if elected.

Isiguzo also promised to appoint the National Ex-Officio Zone D, from the Benue NUJ Council.

In his remarks, Mr Martins Kajo, Acting Chairman of the union in Benue, said Isiguzo was one of the leading presidential aspirants and the state council would take his acceptability into consideration.

Kajo commended the aspirant for having what he termed “a brilliant campaign team and blueprint toward an effective and efficient NUJ”, and called for unity among members to meet set goals.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the NUJ Delegates Conference is scheduled to hold in Abeokuta in October 2.